Lance Armstrong

Disgraced Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong has pleaded guilty to hitting two parked cars in town late last year. Armstrong paid the fine via mail on Friday. The guilty plea closes the case and also keeps Armstrong from a court appearance in Pitkin County.

On December 28th, Armstrong's girlfriend, Anna Hansen, originally told Aspen police she was driving and that icy conditions caused the accident on the city’s west end. She later confessed to lying to police in an effort to avoid media attention.

A former pro cyclist is expected in court soon following two tickets issued for allegedly hitting two parked cars on Aspen’s west end in December, leaving the scene and trying to get his girlfriend to take the rap. The Aspen Police Department says Lance Armstrong concocted the story because he didn’t want to attract media attention. Anna Hansen is not expected to be charged after recanting her false statements to police. The Aspen Daily News reports Armstrong has hired Denver attorney Pamela Mackey. She represented NBA star Kobe Bryant in the 2003-04 sexual assault case he was facing in Eagle County. Armstrong has not spoken to authorities about the incident. It happened after he attended a party at the St. Regis, where he reportedly consumed alcohol. Armstrong is expected in court on March 17th.

As the cycling world gears up for the Tour de France start this coming Saturday, July 5th, the sport is still dusting itself off. A generation of riders were found guilty of cheating in the late nineties through mid-two thousands. One of the most well-known riders was part-time Aspen resident Lance Armstrong who is now stripped of his many wins and banned from the sport. Organizers and riders alike say the sport is far cleaner now. Armstrong and two other former pro cyclists took some time to look back on the choices they made, and what comes next.

Tarnished cyclist Lance Armstrong is at the center of an ongoing controversy about doping in the sport. He’s also now in the spotlight in Hollywood. The first of several anticipated movies about the iconic athlete recently showed in Aspen. In The Armstrong Lie, award winning director Alex Gibney examines the underbelly of the the cyclist’s career. Reporter Elise Thatcher caught up with viewers after a showing at the Wheeler Opera House in Aspen.

Making a death threat against someone in another state gets serious attention from federal law enforcement. Two passionate Lance Armstrong fans recently plead guilty to threatening one of the top people investigating whether the iconic athlete doped. One was Utah resident Robert Hutchins, who will be sentenced in February in Denver. He faces up to five years in jail and a maximum $250,000 fine. In a separate case, Florida resident and doctor Gerrit Kuechle Keats plead guilty to similar threatening charges earlier this fall.

Businesses currently selling medical marijuana will be allowed to sell recreational pot on January 1st, if they’re willing to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for a license. Dispensary owners say the added business would be a boon.

The story of Lance Armstrong’s fall from grace continues to unfold. In a new book, two Wall Street Journal reporters explore the financial underpinnings of how and why the cyclist cheated.

A coal mine over the mountains near Paonia recently laid off many of its employees. The layoffs and that could hurt local communities.

And, we’ll examine at coal mining across the country and look into the challenges the industry’s currently facing.

Finally, we introduce you to a young female snowboarder looking to make the Olympic team in a new event - snowboard slopestyle.

A veritable avalanche of information has come out about cyclist Lance Armstrong doping during his career. The iconic athlete even confessed to it in an Oprah interview early this year. But the details keep coming, now in a book by two Wall Street Journal reporters. Vanessa O’Connell and Reed Albergotti explore the financial underpinnings of how and why Armstrong cheated, in the book “Wheelmen: Lance Armstrong, the Tour de France, and the Greatest Sports Conspiracy Ever.” Armstrong is a part-time Aspen resident. Aspen Public Radio’s Elise Thatcher recently spoke with O’Connell and Albergotti.